I took out some chicken breasts for dinner tonight, but I want to do something different with them. Any ideas? I need something simple, without any weird ingredients (not that I'm against weird ingredients, I just don't want to have to buy a whole bunch of stuff). I just want to jazz them up a bit rather than just throwing them in the oven.

One thing I've been doing is mushing up a Laughing Cow cheese wedge with some spinach inside them and putting some panko crumbs on them, but I want to do something new.

I never get tired of chicken cooked on the grill. You might also pan fry them with some light cooking spray and toss them with a little poultry seasoning. Another favorite chicken method of mine is to toss them in a sauce pot with a jar of salsa. I use 2 chicken breasts, and about a pint of salsa, simmer them together for about 20 minutes and then serve. It's good diced up a little or shredded for a taco chicken salad.

I find that apples bring out a nice flavor with chicken. I don't have a specific recipe, but using some cinnamon and apples and sauteing in a pan comes out pretty good....and different. You can even throw in some raisins and make it dessert-like.

Put some olive and a little butter or margarine into a non stick pan, add some chicken stock (store bought is fine -Rachel Ray's is good), some wine (Marsala is best, if you have it, but any white wine will do) oregano, parsley and fresh garlic. You can add mushrooms for extra flavor if you like em. Cook down, adjust to taste and pour over lightly floured or breaded cooked chicken breast. (or unbreaded is OK too)

A basic Marsala sauce right there and delicious on chicken or shrimp. You can add some parmesan cheese to finish if you like.

OR you could always do a tasty salad. Field greens, thinly sliced red onion, feta cheese, walnuts (lightly glazed are even better), bosc pears, some poached shredded chicken breast, and freshly ground black pepper. Top with a raspberry balsamic vinaigrette.

Another one I make a lot is Satay Chicken. It's my own (made up) recipe, but it may contain too many crazy ingredients for immediate use. This version serves about two people. I like this recipe because it tastes like restaurant food, is high in protein and not too bad on calories. I like to eat it with a small dollop of Greek yogurt and sometimes I serve it over brown rice, but it is really good just off the stove "as is":

Saute the veggies in oil about 5 minutes or until softened and add the red pepper about 1 minute before they're "done". Add the chicken and sate seasoning and heat through, making sure to coat the chicken with seasoning. Add a little bit of chicken broth, just enough to allow the seasonings to coat and soak into the chicken and veggies a little more (i.e. there shouldn't really be a lot of liquid at the bottom of the pan). Add the coconut milk, if desired, right after the broth begins to reduce. Add the coconut and maybe another splash of broth and cook about 5 more minutes. Serve.

Thanks for the suggestions, guys! Everything looks great. I ended up doing the salsa thing...or, a variation on it since my kitchen always seems to be a science lab, haha. Cooked two chicken breasts in a pan with a container of fresh salsa, and added black beans and onions. Then I made rice with mushrooms and onions added to it. Sprinkled a bit of grated cheddar on the chicken towards the end, put it on a bit of the rice, dumped the rest of the salsa/beans on top, and a dollop of light sour cream on top of that. Served it with a big salad and it was delish.

Keep 'em coming since chicken breast is kind of a staple around here and it gets boring fast

We will do a huge batch on the grill at a time...with most of the getting vacuum sealed and frozen in specific serving sizes. Usually just grill them up with a little seasoning...preferably low or no salt. We probably have 5-6 meals each week using chicken breast from the freezer. We go through a 10lb Costco bag of chicken breasts each month.

We than do a number of different things with them...including:

Chicken+pepperjack cheese sandwich with peppers and onions on sandwich rounds. Can also add avocado, bbq sauce, cilantro, etc etc. Actually just a ton of sandwich options.

Chicken on brown rice with black bean dip. The bean dip I make with a little chipotle/adobo paste, cilantro, cumin, shallots, balsamic vinegar, a a touch of oil olive. I plan to try this with either wild rice or quinoa.

Chicken fajita's. Just slice up the chicken and add grilled/fried peppers, tomatoes, onions, shredded cheese, guacamole and wrap in a tortilla.

Chicken with a sesame peanut sauce on whole grain noddles...think Asian salad. I found a recipe to make the sauce...mostly peanut butter and sesame oil with some dried thai peppers. Put everything together and sprinkle some sesame seeds over the top. I like to warm but it's good cold.

Just plain chicken with melted Parmesan cheese covered with pasta sauce..with or without noodles. yummy and quick.